"You know, this role was so not about my acting career," she added. "This role has shaped my life and allowed me not to judge and to love unconditionally. If that goes into my career, great, but if it doesn't and I'm just the dynamic person that I strive to be every day, then I've won, baby!"

The actress, 42, laughed and kidded around with reporters after winning the award. When asked what would happen in Hollywood if more actresses didn't shave their legs like her, she quipped, "They would win Oscars!"

Mo'Nique -- who earned a standing ovation after her name was called -- grew serious when discussing her speech.

"Everything I wanted to say, and everything I needed to say, I said," she told reporters. The actress -- who played an abusive mother in the drama -- also addressed criticism that she didn't play into politics of campaigning for an Oscar. "I'm very proud to be part of an academy that says we will not play that game. We will judge her on her performance, not how many dinners she attended."

She chose her royal blue silk jersey Tadashi Shoji gown for a reason: it was the color Hattie McDaniel, the first black performer to win an Academy Award (for Gone With the Wind), donned to the show in the '40s. Of the flower in her hair, she said, "This is the flower Hattie McDaniel wore when she accepted her Oscars. So for you, Miss Hattie McDaniel, it's about time the world feels you all over them."